U.S. crude oil gains as Israel reportedly prepares for attack by Iran this weekend

Crude
oil
futures
rose
Friday
on
reports
that
Israel
is
preparing
for
a
direct
attack
by
Iran
this
weekend,
in
what
would
be
the
biggest
escalation
of
Middle
East
tensions
since
the
start
of
the
Israel-Hamas
war
last
October.

The


West
Texas
Intermediate
contract
for
May
delivery
hit
a
session
high
of
$87.67,
while
June
Brent
futures
rallied
to
$92.18.


Exxon
Mobil
stock
hit
an
all-time
intraday
high
of
$123.74
as
the
oil
rally
lifted
the
energy
sector.

U.S.
crude
ultimately
gained
64
cents,
or
0.75%,
at
settle
at
$85.66
a
barrel,
while
the
global
benchmark
settled
at
$90.45,
up
0.79%
or
71
cents.

Israel
is
preparing
for
a
direct
attack
by
Iran
on
southern
or
northern
Israel
as
soon
as
Friday
or
Saturday,
a

person
familiar
with
the
matter
told
The
Wall
Street
Journal.
A
person
briefed
by
Iran’s
leadership
told
the
Journal
that
no
final
decision
has
been
made,
though
plans
for
a
strike
are
under
discussion.

People
familiar
with
Western
intelligence
assessments
told

Bloomberg
News
that
an
attack
by
Iran,
or
its
proxies,
with
drones
and
missiles
against
Israel
could
come
as
soon
as
the
next
48
hours.

The
U.S.
embassy
in
Jerusalem
on
Thursday

restricted
government
employees
and
their
families
from
personal
travel
outside
Tel
Aviv,
Jerusalem
and
Beersheba
“out
of
an
abundance
of
caution”
until
further
notice.

Iran’s
Supreme
Leader
Ayatollah
Ali
Khamenei
has
vowed
to
punish
Israel
for
a
missile
attack
an
Islamic
Republic
diplomatic
building
in
Damascus,
Syria,
last
week
that
killed
seven
Iranian
military
officials.

Oil
prices
rallied
after
that
attack,
though
futures
are
down
slightly
this
week
as
inflation
data
and
U.S.
crude
stockpiles
have
weighed
on
the
market.

Israel
has
warned
Iran
it
will
strike
back
against
the
Islamic
Republic
if
Tehran
attacks
Israel.

“If
Iran
attacks
from
its
territory,
Israel
will
react
and
attack
in
Iran,”
Foreign
Minister
Israel
Katz
said
on
the social
media
platform
X
on
Wednesday,
tagging
Khamenei.

Brent
crude
oil
futures
could

spike
to
$100
a
barrel
if
Iran
directly
attacks
Israel,
according
to
Bob
McNally,
president
of
Rapidan
Energy
and
a
former
senior
energy
official
in
the
Bush
administration.
If
the
escalation
leads
to
a
disruption
in
the
Strait
of
Hormuz,
a
critical
trade
route
for
oil,
prices
could
surge
to
$120
or
$130
a
barrel,
McNally
told
CNBC.